Sunday, April 27, 2014

Doubting Thomas

2nd Sunday
of EasterDivine Mercy Sunday

Doubting ThomasStained Glass windowAssumption ChurchFairfield, CT*

In the Sundays after Easter
the Church gives us a little history lesson. For the next few weeks the first
reading will be taken from the Acts of the Apostles, and not from the Old
Testament or Hebrew scriptures. We are going to see the young Church growing
through the "signs and wonders" worked by the Apostles in the Name of
the Risen Christ.They devoted
themselves to teaching...to the communal life, to the breaking of bread and to
the prayers.

Today's gospel, however,
shows us another manifestation of the Risen Lord. It is the traditional and
touching story of "doubting Thomas," from St. John's gospel. Before
Vatican II this gospel was always used for the first Sunday after Easter. Even
though we now have three cycles of gospel readings, the story of our Lord's
appearance to the Apostles and to Thomas is used in each cycle.

Remember that last week we
heard how in the early hours of the first Easter Sunday, Mary Magdalene had
found the tomb empty. Then St. John tells us that he and Peter ran to the tomb
and also found it empty with the burial cloths neatly rolled up. When the two
men went back to tell the others, Mary Magdalene stayed by the tomb. Jesus
appears to her and asks her why she's weeping. At first she fails to recognize
Him but when He speaks her name she believes. We can imagine her throwing her
arms around Him but He cautions her not to touch Him, "for I have not yet
ascended to my Father." He tells her to tell His brethren what she has
seen. She returns to the disciples and says, " I have seen the Lord."
Immediately, after this episode John's gospel jumps right to the incident in
today's gospel reading.

On the evening of that day
Jesus comes to the disciples despite the locked doors of the house. He
"stood in their midst and said to them "Peace be with you." He
shows them His hands and His side and they all rejoice. Again He says,
"Peace be with you," and tells them of their mission. "As the
Father has sent me, so I send you."All were present except Thomas and when he returns, he can't believe it.

Unless
I see the mark of the nails in his hands

and
put my finger into the nailmarks

and
put my hand into His side, I will not believe.

A week goes by and Jesus
appears to them again. Again He says, "Peace be with you." This time
Thomas is there and in that unforgettable scene, Jesus tells him to examine his
wounds. "Do not be unbelieving but believe." We can picture Thomas
dropping to his knees and saying, "my Lord and my God."

Only about a century ago Pope
Pius X, who would later be canonized as St. Pius X was trying to encourage
frequent reception of Communion. It was part of the effort of this great Pope
to restore all things to Christ. It's hard to believe but for centuries most
Catholics did not receive Communion at Mass. Not only did Pius X encourage
adults to receive, he also lowered the age for the reception of first Communion
so that children could receive. As part of this effort Pius X encouraged
Catholics to look at the Host when it was elevated and repeat the words of
Thomas. "My Lord and my God."

The Pope also initiated a
great liturgical reform movement. He was the first to grant permission for the
words of the Mass to be printed in everyday language alongside the traditional
Latin. Older Catholics will remember the Latin-English Missals of their youth.
His reforms led to the liturgical reforms of the Second Vatican Council. One of
those reforms has particular relevance to today's reading.

How many times in today's
gospel did our Lord say, "Peace be with you?" In the traditional Latin
Mass it seemed like the priest was always kissing the altar and then turning to
the people to say "Pax Vobiscum", "Peace be with you." The
altar represented Christ. The priest would receive the Kiss of Peace from
Christ and then pass it on to the deacon, who in turn would go into the
congregation and bring Christ's Kiss of Peace to all. Since Vatican II the
Church has given new emphasis to this practice.

Later in the Mass the priest
will give us the Kiss of Peace and ask us to pass it on to our neighbor. He
will ask us to give much more than a simple handshake. He will ask us to repeat
the same words that our Lord used in today's gospel and give Christ's blessing
to our neighbor. A blessing is a real thing. It is meant to heal. We are being
asked to bring Christ to our neighbor just as the Apostles did. After the
Apostles believed, they were able to work "signs and wonders," they
were able to heal the sick in both body and soul.

People will travel thousands
of miles to receive the blessing of the Pope, the Vicar of Christ. Yet, for us
we believe that at every Mass Christ, Himself, comes into this room and gives
us His blessing. "Peace be with you." As Peter said in today's second
reading: